The mission of the American Spinal Injury Association is:

(a) to promote and establish standards of excellence for all aspects of health care of individuals with spinal cord injury from onset throughout life.

(b) to educate members, other healthcare professionals, patients and their families as well as the public on all aspects of spinal cord injury and its consequences in order to prevent injury, improve care, increase availability of services and maximize the injured individual's potential for full participation in all areas of community life.

(c) to foster research which aims at preventing spinal cord injury, improving care, reducing consequent disability, and finding a cure for both acute and chronic SCI.

(d) to facilitate communication between members and other physicians, other health care professionals, researchers and consumers.

In an effort to better address the needs of its members as well as stay viable during these changing times in health care, the Board of ASIA has undertaken the development of a new strategic plan for the association. Some of the major issues and strategies identified are:
 

Practice Guidelines: ASIA will continue to work with the PVA's Consortium for Spinal Cord Injury Medicine Clinical Practice Guidelines development.
Membership Drive: Bring in 100 new members in 5 years.
ASIA Website Expansion: Broaden membership capability for interactive communication and Association information.
Marketing Strategy: A new initiative to build on ASIA's success in fundraising and solicitation of sponsorships for Association activities.

During the decade of the 1960s, physicians and other medical professionals engaged in the treatment of spinal cord injury sought to align themselves as a group, in an effort to exchange ideas and work together toward the establishment of a model for care delivery to this patient population. The early 1970s brought support for the concept of a model of care from the Rehabilitation Services Administration (under the then Department of Health, Education and Welfare) which created the "model spinal cord injury systems" program. Currently eighteen such models exist nationwide, supported by the Department of Education, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. It was out of this group the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) was created in 1973.

ASIA held its first official meeting in 1973, with twenty-one members present. Currently, ASIA has nearly 600 members. In 1974, attendance at the meeting was expanded to include non-physicians. The first formal scientific session was held in 1975 in New York City. That same year, the association incorporated in Illinois and the Central Office was opened in Chicago. Several years later, a second office was established in Atlanta, Georgia which managed the clinical meeting planning. These two offices currently manage all of the administrative and operational activities of the association.

ASIA is governed by a Board of Directors, whose membership composition is reflective of the multidisciplinary nature of its members. There are twelve (12) Directors, three of whom also serve as elected Officers. Nomination to the Board of ASIA is accomplished through the Directors Nominating Committee, comprised of the immediate past-president (chair) and five others who are either current or past members of the Board. Nominations for new Board appointments are submitted to the current Board of Directors for final vote. Individuals nominated to the Board of Directors will typically have demonstrated significant contribution to the association either by service on committees or the scientific program, or who have made significant contribution to the field of spinal cord injury.